His cuddling campaign received an
international dose of publicity today, after a clip showing his
public displays of affection won a coveted front page spot on the
video sharing website.

An American television audience of millions also watched him at
work, when the video was broadcast on the prime-time breakfast
program Good Morning America yesterday.

Today, the hugger was at it again, brandishing his "free
hugs" sign in the busy pedestrian thoroughfare, and having
quite a few people take him up on his offer.

"It's a way to make people smile," Mann said.

"For every person who gets a hug, you see five walk past
with a smile on their face."

Juan Mann (pronounced one man) is a play on words, but the hugger
insisted his rules included no names, no phone numbers, no
relationships and no dates.

The hit video came about after a meeting - and a hug -
more than a year ago with the lead singer of the Sick Puppies, a
Sydney band made up of three former Mosman High School students.

The singer, Shimon Moore, was working odd jobs by day and playing
gigs by night.

"I was one of those guys in Pitt Street Mall with a sandwich
board advertising a shoe sale," Moore told smh.com.au today.

The two became mates, and Moore borrowed his father's video
camera to shoot footage of the hug man at work.

But his efforts to spread the love became a little too popular
for some people's liking, according to a blurb on the YouTube
video, which said: "As this symbol of human hope spread
across the city, police and officials ordered the Free Hugs
campaign BANNED."

Undeterred, Mann collected more than 10,000 signatures on a
petition he presented to the City of Sydney council. Demands for
a halt to the hugs petered out shortly after, and the end of the
clip shows Mann hugging an official.

Speaking by phone from Los Angeles, where the Sick Puppies moved
a year ago, the lead singer said he mixed the video with their
song All The Same as a gift for his friend, to lift his
spirits after his grandmother died.

It had the desired effect. Four days ago, the band posted the
clip on YouTube. By 3pm today, it had close to 700,000 hits and
almost 6000 comments, most of them gushing.

Like this one: "Made me cry. I love you all!"

The musician said the video had taken Mann's mission worldwide.

"He's achieved what he set out to do and I was lucky enough
to be there to film it," Moore said.

There are even plans for a mass free hug-fest at midday on
Monday, which could come in handy if the Sydney Swans don't win
the premiership.

City worker Elly Mitchell, who handed out a few free hugs on her
lunch break today, said she was inspired to organise the event
after seeing the video online.

"We're going to hug the city," Ms Mitchell said.

A City of Sydney spokesman Josh MacKenzie said he could find no
record of rangers asking Mann to move on.

"In fact, the feeling around the office is one of support
for his campaign to spread a bit of happiness and love in the
CBD," the spokesman said.

Asked if he had accepted a free hug, the council spokesman said
he hadn't.

"But I'm sure council staff would welcome the opportunity to
have a hug," he said.

Here is something from an old editorial I
wrote in 2003 when I was living in Australia

About two weeks ago I was talking to
some high school students before school started. I was asking
them about the school rules for hugging. They told me it was
not permitted --not even on the sidewalk in front of the
school. Two couples were trying not to be seen been holding
each other as we spoke on the sidewalk. I told them I thought
that was ridiculous and said people need to be hugged. They
said someone had gotten in trouble for just holding hands. I
was astounded. I asked how old they were and wondered if they
were just very large two year olds. They were 16. Legally old
enough to live on their own in this country, (Australia) but
not allowed to hug or hold hands with their
boyfriends/girlfriends while on school property or even on
the sidewalk, which I am pretty sure is not technically even
school property.

As we talked it was clear they had
never met anyone like me. I could tell how desperate they
were have someone listen to them and empathize with them. But
a school authority figure came and told them that they had to
get inside, saying "You know the rules." I saw the
pain in their faces. Some of them were literally behind a
fence while others were on the sidewalk. One young man behind
the fence looked like he had been abused. He just had that
look. He was desperate for someone to listen to him. Truly
desperate. Yet they were forced to leave. Well, they weren't
physically forced. The threat of punishment was enough. After
years of being threatened and punished, and seeing punishment
all around them, they knew it was easier to just obey the
voice of authority without question.

While I stayed a few minutes longer to
talk to the two some of the friends who did not attend that
school, the school authorities called the police.

Today, in 2006, I was chatting with a high
school student in the USA, a country which likes to boast that it
is the Land of the Free. She told me students are not even
allowed to touch each other or they will be punished with
"detention" - -also sometimes called "In school
suspension" or ISS. And if you don't serve your time in
detention you get kicked out of school for two days.

It is almost a sure bet that the idea free
hugs would be totally forbidden in the high schools in Australia,
where the city officials now look so foolish for trying to ban
free hugs on the street. And they would also be forbidden in the
USA.

So I ask again, why do we accept different
standards for the treatment of teenagers? Don't they have needs
to be hugged just as adults do, if not more? Do we think hugs are
healthy for "adults" but not teenagers?

I wonder what the world response would be
if the free hugs man shot some videos of high school students in
Australia and the USA being stopped from hugging.

I hope that we will see this in the near
future so the world can see what is really being done to
teenagers in some countries which claim to be models of freedom.

Today I checked google again for "Hugs
unite us" and this time I found two results. The first one
is mine and the second is from this site...

http://www.fotolog.com/bb_am/?pid=17703276 where I am cited by the artist and photographer who
found my quote. I feel a little encouraged by this. I would like
to see more people connect the words "hugs unite us"
with the videos in a step towards a more united world, free from
the divisions of race, religion and nationality.